The invention relates to an apparatus for controlling vehicle opening/closing element that makes it possible to control an opening/closing element of a vehicle according to a user's wish without a user's touch with the element.
A recent vehicle opening/closing element; in particular, a door open/close control system, has commonly adopted a method under which a user establishes wireless communication between a vehicle and a portable electronic key by use of a portable electronic key. As to timing when wireless communication develops between the vehicle and the portable electronic key, wireless communication is triggered by user's action for pressing a lock/unlock button of the portable electronic key under one method. Under another method, wireless communication is automatically initiated when the portable electronic key enters a predetermined communication range from a vehicle. In any case, a vehicle door is shifted to an unlock standby state by wireless communication and can be easily unlocked by a user's touch with a door handle. The phrase “unlock standby state” designates a state in which the opening/closing element is not yet unlocked at this point in time and capable of unlocking the opening/closing element (or simultaneously opening a door) by a user's additional action.
However, in order for the user to come on board the vehicle, opening the vehicle door is necessary. However, in order to open the vehicle door, the user must perform motion of laying his/her hand on a handle of the door and pulling open the door. For instance, consider that the user carries pieces of baggage or suffers an injury on his/her arm, the user will encounter difficulty in performing opening motion itself, which can be said to mar user's convenience.
In order to address such a problem, a vehicle door control system described in connection with Patent Literature 1 is provided with outside photographing means for photographing a user who is present at a position outside the vehicle where he/she can visually recognize the vehicle door, and an orientation and a motion trajectory of a user's hand or finger are specified by means of an image. Thus, the vehicle door control system can direct the vehicle door to unlock and open by means of motions of the finger or hand without user's direct manipulation of the handle of the vehicle door.